Alumni Updates

Alumni

Dr. Heather Agazzi, ’97 BA International Studies, ’03 MA School Psychology, ’07 EDS Curriculum and Instruction, ’11 MS Medical Sciences, ’07 PhD School Psychology, is an Associate Professor in Pediatrics and the Section Chief of the Division of Child Development in the USF Morsani College of Medicine. She also serves as Internship Director for the USF Health Internship in Professional Psychology. Dr. Agazzi specializes in helping children with a range of neurodevelopmental challenges including disruptive behavior disorders, developmental delays, autism spectrum disorders, trauma exposures, and learning disabilities. She has also completed research focused on the implementation of Parent-Child Interaction Therapy, HOT DOCS, and Smart Start for young children and their families.

Christopher Allemang, ’16 BS Electrical Engineering, is a Ph.D. candidate studying electrical and computer engineering at the University of Michigan and has secured a position at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, New Mexico. His research interests include microfabrication for scalable and customizable manufacturing of thin-film electronics. His work spans deposition and characterization of oxide semiconductor materials and devices, including atomic-layer deposition of multi-component semiconductor materials. The work he has performed with atomic layer deposition of zinc-tin-oxide semiconductors and aluminum oxide passivation layers has contributed to record high-performance zinc-tin-oxide thin-film transistors with process temperatures compatible with flexible electronics and back end of line 3D monolithic integration. Dhalia Bumbaca, ’18 BA International Business, ’20 MBA, ’20 MS Finance, is currently working at IMG Academy in Bradenton, FL as a Student Engagement Coordinator. There she has largely focused her efforts on creating a Global Activism Program to engage students in social justice issues as well as sustainable initiatives such as an inaugural Farmers Market. She is also currently performing work on two different research projects, one on sports and sustainability, and another working with USF professors investigating gender-based and race-based microaggressions. She has recently started a nonprofit called WellFed Community working with the Well, located in Tampa Bay. Her organization is committed to building healthier communities through sustainable food systems.

Richard “Kyle” Castello, ’12 BA Communications, has traveled to more than 30 countries and worked in Ecuador, the United Kingdom, Spain, and the Netherlands. He is currently living in Barcelona and pursuing a master’s degree in development education and global learning at University College London. He also owns and operates a digital advertising agency focused on growing startups, spreading messages about sustainability, and promoting global citizenship through search engine advertising. His company works with organizations in America, Europe, South America, and the Caribbean, but their ultimate goal is to use advertising to spread global learning in every country.

Dr. Nicholas “Nick” DeVito, ’08 BS Microbiology, ’12 MD, is a medical oncologist and an Instructor of Medicine at Duke University, where he treats patients with gastrointestinal cancers. He conducts laboratory and clinical-translational tumor immunology research focused on dendritic cell biology and immunotherapy resistance thanks to the support of a Damon Runyon Physician Scientist Award. The goal of this work is to improve outcomes for patients with metastatic cancer by achieving meaningful responses to immunotherapy. In 2020, he received a USF Outstanding Young Alumni Award which recognizes the professional accomplishment and university engagement of young alumni. Zita Ballinger Fletcher, ’13 BA Interdisciplinary Social Sciences, is an author, journalist, and military history writer. She has published more than ten works in fiction and nonfiction using the pen name Zita Steele. In 2020, she won awards from the Military Writers Society of America for two of her books: a Silver Medal in History for “Bernard Montgomery’s Art of War,” and a Bronze Medal in Historical Fiction for “The Hidden Sphinx: A Tale of World War II Egypt.” Her work as a journalist has included international reporting, analysis, and features from foreign countries. She also earned a second-place award in the National Federation of Press Women’s 2020 nationwide writing contest for her December 2019 military history article on Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery entitled “Monty Crosses the Rhine.”

Rita Katona, ’02 BA International Business, is Chief Brand and Innovation Officer and Board Chair of So Good So You, a category-leading, plant-based wellness juice shot company. She co-founded So Good So You in 2014 alongside her husband, Eric Hall. With a deep admiration for sustainability and a healthy lifestyle, they established the brand mantra “for the Love of Body & Planet” that still remains today. In 2020, So Good So You was recognized as one of USF’s Fast 56, and as one of Inc. 5000’s Fastest Growing Companies for its rapid expansion of 515 percent in the functional beverage industry. In addition, Rita was named one of the “100 People to Know in 2021” by Twin Cities Business magazine.

Alumni

Nicholas “Nick” Machuca, ’16 BA English, ’16 BA International Studies, is Donor Engagement Coordinator at Equality Florida, the largest state-level organization fighting for LGBTQ+ civil rights and serves several communities across the state. Upon graduating from USF, he went on to receive his MA in English Literature and Language from the University of Oregon in 2018. His passions include exploring the natural world, expanding access to education, and fighting for human rights. He currently helps direct the Florida Futures Project, a nonprofit organization that awards scholarships to college-bound high school graduates who exhibit bold ideas for Florida’s progressive future. Shelby Mars, ’14 BA English, is practicing commercial litigation with Bradley & Riley PC in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. After graduating from USF, she went on to receive a JD from Stetson University College of Law in 2017. Most recently, she co-founded Takes a Break, a blog about exploring what “Taking a Break” can look and feel like for different individuals. The blog offers all types of break-taking resources, including access to online cooking classes, opportunities to explore new parts of Earth online, and information about the latest up-and-coming podcasts.

Dr. Chinyere “ChiChi” Okpaleke, ’08 BS Biomedical Sciences, ’10 MS Medical Sciences, currently works as a full-time Hospitalist in Houston, Texas. She founded Reality Speaks, a nonprofit that began with a mission to help Tampa Bay area student athletes prepare for life beyond sports. It has since broadened its focus to assisting local families and students in need. Her activism in the community was recognized when she received a USF 2020 Outstanding Young Alumni Award and the USF MCOM 2020 Early Achievement Award in Service. “Dr. Chi” also donates her skills as a physician to the medically underserved, participating in mission trips to Nigeria, Jamaica, and the Dominican Republic. Her charitable work has earned her BayCare Medical Group’s Golden Compass Award for Service.

Luke Richardson, ’11 BA Accountancy, ’13 MA Accountancy, is an instructor in the Lynn Pippenger School of Accountancy in the Muma College of Business at USF, teaching courses in both taxation and financial and managerial accounting. He is also currently pursuing a JD from Stetson University College of Law. He is a past recipient of the School of Accountancy Advisory Council’s Outstanding Teaching Award and serves as the faculty adviser for the accounting internship course. Richardson has been featured as a tax expert in several local media outlets, including FOX, ABC, NBC, CBS, Spectrum News, Bay News 9, WalletHub, and The Penny Hoarder.

Rylee Wagner, ’18 BS Biomedical Sciences, works for Americorps as their Immunization Outreach and Education Coordinator with Immunize Colorado, a non-profit organization focused on building awareness and advocating for policies to increase childhood vaccination rates in the state. She works with a collection of six medically underserved counties throughout the western Colorado region and helped plan the COVID-19 vaccine distribution to the highest risk individuals in this region. Prior to this work, she served as a Community Health Advisor with the Peace Corps in Madagascar. Before the emergency evacuation in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, she worked at a local clinic in the town of Ambatosoratra assisting with health education programs covering topics ranging from nutrition to malaria to sanitation. Her ultimate goal is to complete a MD/MPH program with a focus on global medicine and medically underserved communities.

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